Nectar to Avios points calculator

The Nectar – Avios partnership started in 2021, but despite it being around for over 4 years, it’s not often well understood.

Part of the reason is the asymmetric calculation when covering your points from one to the other. The other is the sheer complexity of Avios points themselves.

As a user of both, I’m going to show you how to convert your Nectar points to Avios, what they are worth, and explain when you should do it.

Let’s dive straight in with converting Nectar points to Avios and visa-versa.

Converting Nectar points to Avios

One Nectar point is worth 0.5p, while one Avios point is typically worth 1p. Yet when you convert 400 Nectar points to Avios, you don’t get 200 Avios, but actually 250.

That means each Avios point collected is only costing you 0.8p. A 25% bonus compared to buying or earning Avios in the normal way.

Converting Avios to Nectar points

What about the other way? Avios to Nectar is converted on a 1-to-1 basis, so 400 Avios nets you 400 Nectar points. Given an Avios point is typically worth 1p, and Nectar 0.5p that represents a 50% loss in value.

Despite that, it might still be worth it for those with large Avios balances that can’t be spent, or are expiring soon.

Avios points value in pounds

Typically 1 Avios point is worth about 1p, but the real-world value of your points is influenced by how you earn them and how you spend them.

Points earned on flights such as those by British Airways, can have a different value to those acquired through credit card bonuses or promotions. For instance, if you have bonus Avios at a discounted rate, your effective cost per point might be lower than 1p, making redemptions that return 1p or more attractive.

The value you get from your Avios depends on your redemption method. A long-haul business class upgrade might squeeze out more than 1p per point if it saves you several hundred pounds on a cash fare. Short-haul economy redemptions barely meet—or even fall below—the 1p benchmark.

How you collect Avios points affects their value

If you’ve earned points on a premium credit card or during a bonus promotion, the “real” cost you incurred can be lower than the face value of 1p per point. The Amex preferred rewards Gold card offers 20,000 Avios when you spend £3,000 in the first three months.

If you were spending that money anyway, the Avios points are just a bonus, with the only cost being the opportunity cost of earning cashback (provided you cancel card after the first year). Typically, the best cashabck credit and debit cards cap cashback to £20 a month.

In this scenario then, the cost of those 20,000 Avios points is the £60 you missed out on buy not using a cashaback credit card. That works out at 0.3p per point, or a 233% return on the typical value. You are effectively gaining £200, for a £60 spend.

Should you convert your Nectar points to Avios?

If you plan to spend your points on everyday purchases, the flexibility and lower redemption value in the Nectar scheme might be acceptable. But for high-value flight redemptions, keeping your Avios in the airline programs is generally a better deal.

The conversion to Nectar makes the most sense when you aren’t considering flying long haul or using any of the Avios benefits such as hotels, and car hire, or when your points are getting close to expiry (36 months).

Short haul flights can be hit and miss. For example part paying for your short haul ticket with British Airways will result in a redemption value of between 0.48p to 1p depending on the offer at the time.

Part paying with Avios on Iberia flight though would result in a redemption value of 0.46p which is less than the 0.5p you’d get for converting your Avios to Nectar.